Red Rubber Ball/ How Can I Leave Her

Here's a beautiful copy of a single that always surprises me when I hear it anew: I like it a whole lot more than my memory of it. I think that reflects the somewhat childish, sing-song quality to the lyric (yes, Paul Simon co-wrote this song, but was he responsible for the concept?), which you don't notice so much when the excellent band is playing. Speaking of excellent, be sure to check out the almost-Garage jangly guitar number on the flip. Note: This 45 record has Near Mint labels with a touch of ringwear, especially on the B side. It sounds much better than it looks, as the grooves preserve undistorted sound that has almost no surface noise. (This scan is a representative image from our archives.)